Seib & Wessel: What We’re Reading Thursday

A post-election survey of Hispanic voters in four states by a Republican firm finds majorities in each state say the GOP doesn’t respect “the values and concerns” of the Hispanic communities. The margins: 51% to 44% in Florida, 54% to 40% in New Mexico, 59% to 35% in Nevada, and 63% to 30% in Colorado. [Resurgent Republic]

Left-leaning economist @DeanBaker13 dissents from the celebration of Simpson and Bowles, arguing that “whining about the deficit” and Social Security and Medicare is a “huge distraction” from other, more pressing economic issues. [Yahoo Finance]

Americans are looking for compromises to veer away from the fiscal cliff. About two-thirds of Americans of all political stripes would like Congress to strike a deal to reduce the federal budget deficit, even if it means cutting Social Security and Medicare and boosting some tax rates. More than three-quarters, including 61% of Republicans, say they would accept raising taxes on the wealthy to avoid the large spending cuts and broad tax increases now set to take place in January. [WSJ]

Associated Press

China’s newly appointed leader Xi Jinping

An online fan club springs up for China’s new leader, Xi Jinping–and appears, the Washington Post’s @keithrichburgwrites, to be a creation of the ever-evolving party propaganda apparatus. [Washington Post]

Ann O’Malley of Center for Studying Health System Change reports on a nationally representative sample of 9,577 that found emergency room use is significantly lower when patients have access to after-hours services with their primary care provider:30.4% of patients with after-hours access to primary care reported emergency room use in 2010 vs. 37.7% of those who didn’t. [Health Affairs]

Shiho Fukada photographs show Japan’s job crisis, the quiet erosion of prosperity for some of its people. After a 10-year absence, she says, “I was struck by how isolated people are.” [New Yorker]

Sign of the Times

Minor milestones We’ve spotted:

Fewer than a third of the members of Pakistan’s Parliament file annual tax returns. [New York Times]

Harbinger of things to come: 3M warns lower government spending globally could hurt its sales of materials for road signs. [WSJ]

Redbox, the DVD vending machine outift, teams up with Verizon to compete with Netflix to offer streaming video of movies. [WSJ]

Government of British Columbia considers issuing bonds denominated in Chinese yuan. [WSJ]

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Washington Wire is one of the oldest standing features in American journalism. Since the Wire launched on Sept. 20, 1940, the Journal has offered readers an informal look at the capital. Now online, the Wire provides a succession of glimpses at what’s happening behind hot stories and warnings of what to watch for in the days ahead. The Wire is led by Reid J. Epstein, with contributions from the rest of the bureau. Washington Wire now also includes Think Tank, our home for outside analysis from policy and political thinkers.